


After The Battle

by softSnowdrop



Category: RWBY
Genre: (but manpain is only really relevant in the first chapter), Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Comfort, F/F, F/M, Manpain, not sure if complete
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-01-03
Updated: 2018-01-03
Packaged: 2019-02-26 06:37:43
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 3,568
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13230078
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/softSnowdrop/pseuds/softSnowdrop
Summary: Jaune has a little chat with Qrow about self-blame, and Weiss wakes up.Post v5e11. Waaay after that.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I don't think this is, at ALL how shit'll go down in-canon, btw. This was just self-indulgent manpain and gays and several characters reacting to the aftermath.

                “Jaune?” A familiar voice came to him; her tone was kind, it was friendly, and it was a voice that he had wanted to hear every single day of his life.

                He had only realized it just a little bit too late.

                “Jaune,” She ran up to him, placing one hand on his chest, and a hand on his shoulder. A soft smile tugged at her lips, and her bright green eyes lit up with nothing but pure love and adoration when she saw him. “Jaune, I’ve missed you so, so much.”

 

                He couldn’t say anything—not at first. Tears welled in his eyes, and he parted his lips to speak—but they only quivered. He scanned her face for any sign of anger, of pain, of anything negative—but he found nothing. Only solace and tenderness.

                “Jaune—everything is fine, I promise.” She spoke again, now moving her hands to cup his face—she was dressed like she always was. Her flimsy armor—the garbage that it was, it didn’t do anything to protect her, if anything it only led to her demise—her circlet, her gloves, even her makeup was the same as ever.

                He hesitated to speak, his voice getting held back by a lump in his throat. “Pyrrha—I. I couldn’t help you, and I’m sorry, I was just so confused, and then when you shoved me in that locker, I was terrified that I would—”

                She laughed heartily, dipping her head down briefly before looking back at him. “Jaune, you don’t have to apologize. It was my choice, I knew what I was doing.”

                She planted a featherlight kiss on his forehead, her hands locked on the sides of his face. She used her thumb to wipe some of his tears, and slowly moved to press her forehead against his. “I promise you, there is nothing to be sorry for.”

                He had slowly moved his hands up to touch hers—he didn’t care if this was just some hazy dream before death, he didn’t care if it were just a dream—she was here, and she was perfectly okay. There was nothing in this moment that he wanted more than this.

                But his heart still broke. “Pyrrha, there’s a lot to be sorry for.” He muttered, slowly moving her hands from his cheeks and holding them close to him. “I didn’t know what I wanted, not until it was too late. I should’ve been ready to go fight with you, to—”

                Pyrrha pulled herself back, now looking him in the eyes as she spoke. Pain crossed her expression as she shook her head.

                “You would have died, too.” She frowned, quickly biting his comment back before he could finish. “Jaune, I wanted to fight alone. I knew it was a fight that I couldn’t win.”

                “So then why did you go?!” As Jaune raised his voice, it cracked. “Why did you go, you didn’t have to do that to yourself, Pyrrha. You didn’t have to—”

                “I had to try, Jaune. If I had ran with you, she would have followed me.” Pyrrha’s expression softened again as she squeezed Jaune’s hands tightly. “She would have followed me back to our team, to our friends—and I didn’t want to risk her hurting anyone else like she already had.”

                Jaune had broken out into sobs by this point, his head hanging low and falling onto her shoulder. He dropped her hands, and pulled her closer by the waist.

                He wanted to repeat that she didn’t have to, but she had already set her mind on that. And if that’s what she believed, then he had no reason to doubt her. Regardless of how much it hurt in the end.

                “You don’t have to cry, Jaune.” Pyrrha whispered, slowly putting her arms around him. “Everything is fine; I promise, we’ll meet again some day.”

                He hushed after a few minutes of her stroking his hair, her humming softly, and occasionally reassuring him that everything was fine.

                “Pyrrha, I love you,” His voice strained, though he had finally lifted his head and planted a kiss against her temple. “I love you so much, and I just wanted you to be happy. I wanted our team to be happy. We were supposed to graduate Beacon together, and—”

                “It just wasn’t meant for us, Jaune. You, Ren, and Nora all had bigger things to do. And I… I was meant to lose, in the end.”

                “That’s not true, Pyrrha, don’t say that—you were meant to be the fall maiden, or whatever bullshit that is, you—”

                “I only received half of her powers. In the end, I lost. I’ve always made my own destiny, Jaune—it’s your turn to do the same.”

                She stepped back briefly, planting a kiss on both of his cheeks, his forehead, and finally his lips before smiling softly at him. “I believe in you.”

                Right as Jaune opened his mouth to speak, to start blubbering again, to thank her for her support, a blade lodged through under her right breast, from her back. Standing, just in-view from over her shoulder, was Cinder Fall, sneering at the two.

                When Jaune looked back, he didn’t see Pyrrha—instead, he saw Weiss, gasping, twitchily reaching for the blade that had lodged itself through her. She started to stagger forward, and then collapse into Jaune’s arms—

                And then he jolted up; he was covered in cold sweat, and he was breathing heavy. He immediately scanned the room for the others—he listed them off, one by one.

                Nora, her back against the wall, as she leaned against Ren, their hands intertwined; Ruby, unconscious with a cold press to her forehead—Qrow sitting, wide-awake, bedside to her; Oscar, asleep in a chair with his cane in his lap; Blake, leaning against a wall, while Sun and Ilia leaned against her; Yang, and thank god, Weiss—Yang sitting bedside to Weiss, who was fast asleep—still visibly breathing. She held one of Weiss’s hands tightly in her own, though she was clearly fast asleep, resting with her head laying against her prosthetic arm.

                He breathed a soft sigh of relief—though he was still shaken by his dream—and slowly walked over to Qrow; he pulled up the nearest chair, and sat next to him, facing Ruby.

                He stayed silent, his gaze fixated on Ruby’s unconscious body. He wanted to ask how she was doing immediately, but he already knew the answer—he would tell him that she was fine, just out of it.

                “Hey, kid.” Qrow spoke quietly, glancing over at him for only a brief moment before looking back to Ruby, shutting his eyes, and drawing a deep breath. “Somethin’ on your mind?”

                Jaune stayed silent for the first few seconds, his gaze locked on his hands, which he fumbled with in front of him. When he spoke, he swallowed hard, and refused to look directly at Qrow. “Do you ever blame yourself for someone else’s death?”

                Qrow’s expression softened and turned to that of sympathy. “Every day of my goddamn life. Y’know, Weiss isn’t dead, she’s laying behind you, just asleep. No need to have _that_ on your conscious.”

                “I—I know,” Jaune stammered out, looking up briefly at Qrow, tears welling in his eyes. “But I still blame myself for what happened to Pyrrha—and for Weiss getting… Well, for the shape she’s in now.” His stare trailed off again, shifting to Ruby, and finally, back on his hands. “Me fighting Cinder is why Ruby’s in the shape she’s in now, too.”

                “Listen, if anyone should be blaming themselves for that whole mess—it’s me. I’m the one who brings all the bad luck, remember, kid?” Qrow reached out—for the first time—and touched Jaune’s shoulder. “As much as you grate my nerves, I hate seeing you like this. You shouldn’t have to deal with all of _this_ at your age.”

                “But I _do_ deal with it.”

                “I know you do, kid. My nieces do, too. Which is why I’m here for them—and for you.” A small grin crossed his face. “Consider me your personal therapist.”

                “I don’t think you’d be that great of a therapist.”

                Qrow laughed at his retort, though Jaune was dead-serious with the statement. “Yeah, but it’s the least I can do for you. You’re one of my nieces friends, after all. Ruby and Yang see you like an annoying, idiot brother. So, feel free to call me _Uncle Qrow_ , too, kid.”

                A tiny smile tugged at Jaune’s lips. “Thanks.”

                “So, what’s got you up late and filled with self-blame? Bad dream?” Qrow leaned back in his chair, crossing his arms over his midsection as he kept his gaze locked on the other.

                Jaune hesitantly nodded, now directing his attention to Qrow.

                “Well, kid. I think you’ve all got a lot to talk about in the morning.” Qrow patted his back. “It might help if you all listen to each other, you’ve all seen Hell over the past year.”

                “Is Ruby going to be awake by then…?”

                Qrow grew silent at the question, all with the exception of a heavy-hearted sigh. After a moment of the uncomfortable quiet, he took a swig from the flask sitting next to his chair, cleared his throat, and spoke. “Listen, she was out of it for a long time the last time this happened. It wasn’t as intense as last time, but… This still took a lot out of her.”

                Jaune looked over at Ruby again, biting his lip. “The last time she did that, she… Watched Pyrrha—”

                “Yeah, she told me all about what she saw.”

                “She’s got it worse than me. I always focused on myself, and how I blamed myself for Pyrrha—but I can’t imagine how she feels, she—”

                “She made it to the top right in time to see it happen.” Qrow rolled his eyes, making a frustrated grunt as he moved to lean forward and adjust Ruby’s damp cloth. “Listen, kid—there’s no point in comparing trauma. Like I said, you’ve all been through hell. Don’t dismiss your shit like that, it’ll only make it harder for you to cope in the long run.”

                Jaune considered arguing--he really didn't feel like he had any place to talk about how everything negatively affected him, but instead, he silently nodded. He took Qrow's advice, figuring that he knew what he was talking about.


	2. Chapter 2

                The first one to hear the groan and see Weiss’s face contort in pain as she slowly raised herself was Yang. She had been bedside the entire time, holding the other’s hand; the minute she heard her groan, she shot up, and watched her face.

                “Weiss?” She whispered urgently. “Weiss, are you—are you awake?”

                Weiss’s response was weak, but still—it was a response. “What happened?” She slowly moved her left hand up to touch her wound, only to flinch as her fingers even slightly grazed it. “Ow—”

                “Careful,” Yang ushered, lightly taking her hand and moving it away. “don’t hurt yourself…” She breathed a sigh of relief as her gaze met the other’s; _Weiss is fine,_ she reassured herself. _She’s fine, she’s gonna be okay._

                “Do you want anything—food, water? You were out of it for a long time.”

                Weiss hesitated, but slowly nodded in response. “Just water, please. Thank you, Yang.”

                Yang nodded and stood from her seat; it didn’t take her long to return to the room with a plastic bottle of water. “Here—I didn’t want to risk you accidentally breaking glass, so… Sorry if it’s not really fancy or anything.” She uncapped it, and held it out to her.

                “It’s water,” Weiss rolled her eyes, a hint of a smile forming on her lips. “it doesn’t have to be fancy.” She took the water, and took a small sip before holding it between her hands, losing her focus in it.

                “You should uh. You should probably stay down for a few days, Weiss…” Yang murmured, slowly taking her seat again. “It’s probably going to be a bit before you can move right again.  Especially with stitches in you.”

                Weiss sighed, taking another drink of the water. “Great. You guys fight an amazing battle, and I get taken out right at the start of it.” She muttered sarcastically. “Sorry that I couldn’t help you guys out more.”

                “Weiss, you don’t have to apologize, we all took some bad hits. You just… Happened to take the worst. I’m just glad that you’re okay.” Yang carefully reached out to touch Weiss’s arm softly. “I’m just glad that you’re safe.”

                “So, how long have you been sitting in that chair? You know, you can always sit next to me.”

                “I didn’t want to accidentally slap you or something in my sleep.”

                “Right, you do toss and turn _a lot_.” Weiss paused, a small, sly smile crossing her lips. “You snore a lot, too.”

                “Hey—hey, snoring won’t accidentally hurt you.”

                The two laughed quietly for a second, before Weiss trailed off to scan the rest of the faces in the room. “Oh, wow. Everyone’s here, aren’t they?”

                “Yep, Blake and Sun jumped in sometime after everything started going down, and this was like. One of the only rooms that we could get to fast.” Yang glanced over at the sleeping trio—Ilia with her head on Blake’s shoulder, her hand lightly placed over Blake’s; Sun leaning against Blake on the other side of her. “I’m glad she came back. And she brought a new friend.”

                “Ruby… Isn’t okay, is she?”

                Yang’s voice softened, her expression gone from relaxed to concern. “Uncle Qrow said she did that silver-eyes bullshit or something—the same thing that she did when… Y’know, Beacon fell, and she was just out of it for a long time.”

                “I never got to hear about that.” Weiss murmured, tapping her fingers alongside the sides of the water bottle. “Seriously, do you _want_ to sit up here? I know your back just _has_ to be killing you.”

                “Are you sure? Weiss, seriously, if there’s not room for—”

                “Shut up, don’t worry about that.” Weiss slowly moved herself over just a bit, wincing in the process, and patted the spot next to her. “I would be _honored_ to have you sit next to me.”

                “If you insist.” Yang said quietly, slowly moving onto the bed next to her. She hesitated, but slowly moved her arm around Weiss’s shoulders.

                Weiss immediately relaxed under the other’s touch, a soft and gentle sigh escaping her lips as she slowly leaned towards the other. “You’re so warm.”

                “Pfsh, thanks?” Yang planted a kiss to her temple, a grin curling onto her expression. “So, were you just trying to get me up here so that you could use me as your own personal heater?”

                “Maybe.” Weiss retorted playfully. “Or maybe I just wanted my girlfriend to hold me and not hurt her back by sleeping in a chair.”

                “Hey, hey, it was only a few hours.”

                “That’s still pretty bad. I don’t know how you lasted that long.”

 

                The two sat in comfortable silence for a moment, relaxed in each other’s embrace and touch. They didn’t move, they only sat in the dim light of the room in peace, with the knowledge that everything would be a little bit better by the morning—their friends would greet them, Weiss would prove to everyone who was stressed that she was fine—Ruby might wake up—it was fine, it would be okay.

                “Hey, Yang?” Weiss spoke quietly; strength had started to resurface in her tone. “Thanks for being here for me.”

                “Weiss. _Weiss_ , we’re literally dating. We’ve been dating since the Vytal Festival—if I weren’t trying to be here for you, I would be kind of a shitty girlfriend.”

                Weiss smiled, rolling her eyes and giving Yang’s rib a soft nudge with her elbow; an action that Yang couldn’t return—one that she could only whine about softly. “I mean consistently. No matter what, you’ve always had my back. Even before we started dating.”

                “Even when I call you Ice Queen?”

                “Okay, maybe that’s a little bit different.” Her smile grew a bit, but she hid it from the other by hiding her face in her shoulder. “I love you.”

                “I love you, too.” Yang slowly moved her other arm around Weiss, carefully holding her close. “I can’t tell you how glad I am that you’re okay. We’re all really glad.”

                “I’m glad you made it out alright, too,” Weiss whispered, slowly pulling away from Yang’s shoulder and meeting her gaze. “I’m glad we all did. I don’t think my life would be too good without my team in it.”

                “We know ours wouldn’t be the same without you, Weiss.” Yang lightly pressed her forehead against the other’s, shutting her eyes in the process. “We don’t know what we would do without you. _I_ don’t know what I’d do without you.”

                “Hey, I’m kind of twisting in a weird way that hurts my side, can we—”

                “Oh, shit—” Yang pulled back, carefully moving her arms away from Weiss. “Sorry, I—”  

                “Oh, no, it’s fine—” Weiss forced a smile, slowly moving herself to face forward again. “I moved like that myself, you didn’t realize—”

                “You can’t do that to yourself, Weiss, geez.” Yang huffed, slowly moving her arm back over Weiss’s shoulders. “You might accidentally pull some stitches.”

                “I don’t think that would be the most romantic way to end a night.”

                “We would have to wake Ren up so he could patch you up again.” Yang laughed quietly, running a hand through Weiss’s hair. “I think he needs his rest, too.”

                Weiss relaxed at the contact to her hair, and she practically melted against Yang again. “After everything you guys have been through? I’m surprised you’re not trying to sleep it off, too.”

                “Eh,” Yang barely shrugged her shoulders. “You know how it goes, sometimes you just… Can’t sleep it off.”

                She didn’t want to admit it to Weiss, but in the moment—when she turned around and saw Weiss gasping, impaled on Cinder’s weapon—she couldn’t help but flash back to Adam. She relived the entire moment where her life changed drastically, where the nightmares started, where she felt the most abandonment she had ever felt.

                Except it wasn’t Blake, this time; it was Weiss. She was on the end of having to save someone she loved.

                She didn’t want to admit it, but the little sleep that she got wasn’t pleasant, and had only caused her to wake up a crying mess because she thought she had lost Weiss.

                “Yang?” Weiss’s voice became quiet. “You didn’t sound okay when you said that.”

                Yang blinked the tears from her eyes, and she turned her head to look at the other again. “Huh? Oh—” She forced a smile. “Shit, sorry. I’m fine, I promise.”

                “You know, if you’re not okay, it really is fine.” Weiss reached over, delicately placing a hand on Yang’s cheek. “We’re here for you. _I’m_ here for you.”

                “Thanks, Weiss.” Yang’s forced smile slowly faded into a soft, genuine one. “It means a lot to hear you say that.”

                “Do you want to lay down…? You should really try to go back to sleep, since you haven’t slept much.”

                “Hey, shouldn’t _I_ be saying that to _you_?” Yang chuckled, rolling her eyes. “You’re the one with an injury.”               

                “Oh, and as if having a sleepless night because of stress _isn’t_ bad for you?”

                “I think I’ll sleep _a lot_ better, knowing that you’re—” She booped Weiss’s nose with her index finger, a playful grin curling on her lips once again. “—still the same-old Ice Queen you were before you got hurt.”

                “Hey!” Weiss grinned, again elbowing Yang as gently as she could before slowly moving to Lay down; Yang followed her motion, keeping one of her arms underneath Weiss’s head. “I hope you can get some sleep, at least.”

                “Eh, it’s only like, four in the morning. We can probably get a few extra hours, if we’re both lucky.” Yang planted a featherlight kiss on Weiss’s forehead before resting her head against the shared pillow. “And c’mon, let’s be real—nobody here is gonna wake up at their usual time. Everyone’s probably gonna sleep in until noon.”

                Weiss sighed, shutting her eyes for a second. “You know, you’re right. It’s going to throw everyone off-schedule, but I think we could all use the rest.”

                She paused for a second, opening her eyes and looking at Yang’s face. “Hey, before we try to sleep again, do you want a kiss?”

                Yang beamed at the question, her eyes lighting up with pure love and happiness. “Hell yeah, I do. What kind of question even is that—of course I want _always_ kiss from you.”

                Weiss laughed softly, rolling her eyes as she spoke. “And I _always_ want to ask, you know that.” She slowly placed her right hand on Yang’s cheek before planting a gentle kiss on her lips. “I hope you can get some sleep. You deserve it.”

                “You, too, babe. I love you.”

                Weiss slowly moved her arm back down, resting it against Yang’s waist; Yang carefully moved her own prosthetic hand to rest it against Weiss’s hip—of course, being careful about and avoiding the wound near her ribs. “I love you, too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Listen,,, I've got no explanation for the first chapter, other that "Hmmm. I really just wanted to write some manpain." The second chapter is pure, self-indulgent, comforting, gays. So, that's that! Not really what I think is gonna happen obviously, but. I wanted some of that sweet, sweet canon divergence.
> 
> I kinda wanna write another chapter involving Ruby, Ren, Nora, Blake, Ilia, Sun, etc., all seeing Weiss awake and alright. But at the same time, eh, I don't wanna do that after the next episode releases Saturday morning, y'know?


End file.
